Psychology unit 10

personality

personality

an individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 555)

free association

in psychoanalysis, a method of exploring the unconscious in which the person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 557)

psychoanalysis

(1) Sigmund Freud's theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts; the techniques used in treating psychological disorders by seeking to expose and interpret unconscious tensions. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 557)

unconscious

according to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories. According to contemporary psychologists, information processing of which we are unaware. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 557)

id

a reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives. The id operates on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 558)

ego

the largely conscious, "executive" part of personality that, according to Freud, mediates among the demands of the id, superego, and reality. The ego operates on the reality principle, satisfying the id's desires in ways that will realistically bring pleasure rather than pain. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 558)

superego

the part of personality that, according to Freud, represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgment (the conscience) and for future aspirations. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 558)

identification

the process by which, according to Freud, children incorporate their parents' values into their developing superegos. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 559)

Oedipus complex

according to Freud, a boy's sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 559)

psychosexual stages

the childhood stages of development (oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital) during which, according to Freud, the id's pleasure -seeking energies focus on distinct erogenous zones. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 559)

fixation

according to Freud, a lingering focus of pleasure-seeking energies at an earlier psychosexual stage, in which conflicts were unresolved. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 560)

defense mechanisms

in psychoanalytic theory, the ego's protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 560)

repression

in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e pp. 346, 560)

psychodynamic theories

modern-day approaches that view personality with a focus on the unconscious and the importance of childhood experiences. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 565)

collective unconscious

Carl Jung's concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species' history. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 566)

projective test

a personality test, such as the Rorschach, that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of one's inner dynamics. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 567)

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

a projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 567)

Rorschach inkblot test

the most widely used projective test, a set of 10 inkblots, designed by Hermann Rorschach; seeks to identify people's inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of the blots. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 567)

false consensus effect

the tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and our behaviors. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 568)

terror-management theory

a theory of death-related anxiety; explores people's emotional and behavioral responses to reminders of their impending death. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 568)

humanistic theories

view personality with a focus on the potential for healthy personal growth. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 571)

self-actualization

according to Maslow, one of the ultimate psychological needs that arises after basic physical and psychological needs are met and self-esteem is achieved; the motivation to fulfill one's potential. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 571)

unconditional positive regard

a caring, accepting, nonjudgmental attitude, which Carl Rogers believed would help clients to develop self-awareness and self-acceptance. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e pp. 572, 712)

self-concept

all our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in answer to the question, "Who am I?" (Myers Psychology for AP 2e pp. 492, 572)

trait

a characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 576)

personality inventory

a questionnaire (often with true-false or agree-disagree items) on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors; used to assess selected personality traits. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 578)

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

the most widely researched and clinically used of all personality tests. Originally developed to identify emotional disorders (still considered its most appropriate use), this test is now used for many other screening purposes. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 578)

empirically derived test

a test (such as the MMPI) developed by testing a pool of items and then selecting those that discriminate between groups. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 578)

social-cognitive perspective

views behavior as influenced by the interaction between people's traits (including their thinking) and their social context. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 587)

behavioral approach

in personality theory, this perspective focuses on the effects of learning on our personality development. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 587)

reciprocal determinism

the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 588)

positive psychology

the scientific study of human functioning, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e pp. 15, 590)

self

in contemporary psychology, assumed to be the center of personality, the organizer of our thoughts, feelings, and actions. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 594)

spotlight effect

overestimating others' noticing and evaluating our appearance, performance, and blunders (as if we presume a spot-light shines on us). (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 594)

self-esteem

one's feelings of high or low self-worth. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 595)

self-efficacy

one's sense of competence and effectiveness. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 595)

self-serving bias

a readiness to perceive oneself favorably. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 596)

narcissism

excessive self-love and self-absorption. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 597)

individualism

giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 598)

collectivism

giving priority to the goals of one's group (often one's extended family or work group) and defining one's identity accordingly. (Myers Psychology for AP 2e p. 599)